Blame it on the Nargles | George Weasley x Fem Reader

6

Once the feast was over and the remnants of food faded from the plates, we were told to follow our prefects, who would bring us to our common rooms and show us around. I was told that the Hufflepuff Prefect was a boy named Gabriel Truman, and he called the first years into a line. We stood aside to let the other houses exit first, and when Luna passed by me, I clasped her hand quickly.

"Good night!" I called.

"Sleep well," She called back.

We filed out of the Great Hall and down the first flight of steps we came to. I thought at first that we were going to the dungeons, but as we turned down a well-lit corridor, I saw that this place was not dark or cold or scary. There were great portraits on the walls in wonderful colors and all of the people painted in them waved to us. We reached a pile of large barrels next to an oversized painting of a fruit bowl and stopped.

"Listen up ladies and gents! This is the entrance to the Hufflepuff common room and your home for the next seven years! We are so happy to have you. Now, to enter the common room, you simply tap the barrel second up, third in on the middle row." Gabriel pointed with his wand. "Now, we do not have a password to get into our common room, but we do have something else. To open the barrel correctly, you must tap it in a very certain way. 1-2, 1-2-3," He demonstrated by flicking his wand through the air. "If you ever forget, it is helpful to use the name of our founder, Helga Hufflepuff. If you'll notice, the tapping is the rhythm of her name. Hel-ga Huff-le-puff!" He tapped on the barrel and it swung open, revealing a wide tunnel. The ceiling, walls, and floor were packed soil, and I could tell that we were slightly underground. The walls of the tunnel had twisted vines and ferns and flowers growing out of them. On the floor was a long, tasseled carpet that ran the whole length of the passageway. Overall, it was a very pretty effect. One by one, we clambered into the tunnel and walked along it until we got to the common room. It sloped upwards ever so slightly, and when we got to the common room, I couldn't help from smiling. There was a fire crackling in the hearth. The floors were still dirt but layered with beautifully patterned rugs. There were armchairs and poufs and sofas and tables scattered around the room. The windows were circular and right where the walls and ceilings met. Through them, I could see that they were level with the lawns of Hogwarts. The moonlight came through them leaving bright patches on the floor. The rest of the lighting in the room came from many lamps. They all had very intricate designs on their shades and they cast a warm glow throughout the room. The main decorations came from plants. There were plants in baskets hanging from the ceiling, there were plants on stuffed bookshelves, plants were even growing out of the walls themselves.

"Alright everyone, girls dormitories are off to the left, boys to the right. Your luggage should already be there. Sleep well, everyone!" Gabriel ushered us towards the correct doorways and waved goodnight. There were a few scattered replies of "Goodnight", and then we separated into our respective rooms. The girl's dormitory was decorated in much the same way as the common room. There were exposed beams on the ceilings and lots of plants hanging everywhere. The beds were sturdy, four-poster beds, with silky yellow curtains that could be drawn around for privacy. They were arranged in a circle with the foot of every bed facing inwards. In the middle, there was a fire pit of sorts that could be covered so that it would let the hot air out, but take away the risk of being burned. I saw my trunk sitting at the base of a bed, so I headed that way. My bed was all the way in the corner of the room, next to the door, so there was another bed only on one side of me. I quickly unlatched Phineas's carrier and he stepped out gingerly. He sniffed around for a bit and then stretched his legs and curled up on my bed, purring. The girl in the bed next to me was Susan Bones. I only knew her name from sorting, but I decided to introduce myself. I hoped she wouldn't be as strange as the others had been.

"Er, hello," I tried, smiling. "I'm Y/n, who are you?"

"Oh hello!" she returned the smile. "I'm Susan. Isn't this exciting!" She grinned.

"It is! I can still hardly believe that it's real!"

"I was so happy when I got my letter. I'm a half-blood you see, so there was a chance I might not get in,"

"Well, if I'm being honest, I'm very glad you did. You're the only one here who's been nice enough to talk to me so far. Everyone has been acting strangely around me. I tried to talk to that girl over there-" I gestured towards Hannah, who was sitting in her bed across the circle. "-but she wouldn't say a thing to me. I wonder why."

Susan looked uneasy. "Actually, I think I might know why,"

"Really? Will you tell me? I can't stand all of them staring daggers at me,"

"Well, there was a bit of a rumor on the train, you see. Apparently, some people here think that you and your sister are, well, a bit crazy," she grimaced and looked up at me. 

 "Wow! Well, at least now I know it's not really me at all, just the work of a bully,"

"Yeah, that part's good. Oh, and in case you didn't pick up on it, I don't believe them," she smiled warmly at me.

"Thanks, that's really nice to know," I beamed back. "Well, I should probably go to bed now, it's the first day of school tomorrow!" We changed into our pajamas and climbed into bed.

"Goodnight," I whispered.

"Goodnight!" Susan replied quietly.

I drew the curtains around my bed and scooped Phineas into my arms. He licked my nose but settled again. I suddenly realized that this was the first night I had ever spent away from Luna. I thought of her, wherever her common room was, and I hoped someone had been nice to her as well. With these thoughts swimming around my brain, I finally drifted off to sleep.